The idea of repurposing the heat generated by Bitcoin mining to heat homes and greenhouses has been floating around for a few years. As with engineers out there, somebody is out to give these ideas a try, and we are now seeing a trend where these efforts are turning into real-world products.
At the recently concluded CES2026, Superheat introduced a water heater that is truly a Bitcoin miner, heating water as a side gig.
While its costs are higher than a standard water heater, Superheat’s H1 doubles as a source of passive income that will not only pay for the device but also make you some extra bucks on the side as years roll by and the value of Bitcoin surges.
How does it work?
Just in case you have been living under a rock, a quick refresher on Bitcoin. The cryptocoin works by maintaining a public record of its transactions, called the blockchain. To add to the blockchain, one must complete computationally intensive computations called proof-of-work, for which one is rewarded in Bitcoin.
Since Bitcoin’s valuation has increased over the years, mining for these Bitcoins is an economically attractive opportunity. As the blockchain has grown, mining has become increasingly difficult, prompting miners to use advanced computational infrastructure to earn their rewards.
This infrastructure produces a large amount of heat, which some have suggested could be used to heat homes or greenhouses. Superheat has flipped this in its heater, making the mining operation the primary function, while the heated water can be used to warm homes or offices.
Brilliant or Bullsh*t?
Superheat is not the pioneer working with this idea. Others have scaled this up by connecting the heat from their mining infrastructure to district heating systems, helping over 80,000 people stay warm or grow tomatoes or even tulips in greenhouses.
On the surface, this appears to be a brilliant solution. Heat that would otherwise be wasted is now being repurposed to good use. Even if we leave out Bitcoin’s value, this can help people reduce their heating bills and reduce their dependence on fossil fuels typically used for heating.
However, critics of Bitcoin argue that this heat should not have been generated in the first place. Bitcoin mining is extremely energy-intensive and already adds to the stress on electrical grids. Interesting Engineering previously reported on China’s cryptocurrency crackdown, aimed at reducing the extreme energy demand.
Moreover, energy used for Bitcoin mining primarily comes from burning fossil fuels. For heating, countries use natural gas, which is a much cheaper approach than grid-supplied electricity. Even if the heat were given away to customers for free, it would still be generated at a higher cost.
As blockchain technology becomes more complex, mining infrastructure needs to be upgraded. While this works for large-scale mining centers, the economics do not work out at individual scales.
What would an individual user do if the mining hardware becomes obsolete? Get a new water heater again? Or what heating options are available if the chip breaks down?
The future of the approach also hinges narrowly on the fate of cryptocurrencies. If the legislature were brought in to deem Bitcoin mining illegal in your country, would you be forced to stop heating your home?
While the tech is easy to repurpose mining heat, many questions need to be answered before users adopt it as part of their daily lives.